There is a very small profit margin in the production of beef, pork, chicken, and other types of meat, including aquaculture. Profitability frequently turns on feed efficiency and rate of gain. The first criteria relates to the amount of feed intake required to produce a specified amount of weight gain. The second criteria relates to the amount of daily weight gain (frequently referred to as average daily gain, or ADG) on a specified type and/or amount of feed, whether it is forage, grazing and/or grain. Many variables affect these performance criteria, including species, age, genetics, climate, as well as type and amount of feed, forage, grass and supplementation.
Many different compositions have been used to enhance feed efficiency and ADG. Some of these, such as growth hormone, can be overused and leave residues in the meat which then impact the consumer. Others are relatively expensive for the amount of gain. Still others require extensive regulatory testing as being pharmaceutical, not merely nutritional supplements.
It is an object to provide compositions, and methods of use thereof, to improve growth performance in livestock and aquaculture.
It is a further object to provide methods to treat or prevent infections by antibiotic resistant bacteria.
It is a still further object to provide compositions, devices, and formulations utilizing antibacterial compounds to treat or prevent biofilm formation and to disinfect surfaces and materials including meat and other products harvested from livestock.